What Are 10 Quick Facts on Vincent Van Gogh?

Vincent van Gogh was a post-impressionist painter who lived from 1853 to 1890. His paintings remain incredibly famous even to this day. He painted expressionist paintings, oil paintings, self-portraits, landscapes and much more, and his most famous work is arguably one of his earlier ones entitled "The Potato Eaters."

Although it is believed that Van Gogh lived a life of luxury as a Dutch child, he found himself unhappy. Letters and biographies describe him as a silent and cold child. Once, when commenting on his childhood, he remarked that it was cold and sterile. Van Gogh was accused of forcing himself upon one of the peasants he painted in "The Potato Eaters" after she became pregnant. Van Gogh was a tormented man, suffering from alcoholism and depression for most of his life. Van Gogh's life was short for the time period in which he lived. He suffered from diseases, such as syphilis, in his earlier years.

Van Gogh moved to Arles in the hopes of achieving an artistic breakthrough. After this, his paintings became much more colorful. He also wanted to show distortion, as seen in his piece "The Night Café," where the room is distorted, which Van Gogh says shows how one can go mad in the café. He committed himself to Saint-Paul Asylum when he grew ill but continued to paint at the hospital. People speculate that the birth of his nephew overjoyed him, as he immediately began working on a joyous painting of a white almond tree for the baby after his birth. His "Self-portrait without Beard" sold for over $7 million in New York in 1998.